Shellbrook teen Johanna Naber, 3 others die in Arizona plane crash

Four people died in a plane crash Sunday near Sedona, Arizona. (Google Maps)

Johanna Naber, from Shellbrook, Sask., was one of four people who died in a plane crash in Arizona on July 20. (Submitted to CBC)

Johanna Naber, an 18-year-old woman from Shellbrook Saskatchewan, is one of four people who died in a plane crash in Arizona on the weekend.

Also killed were Sabrina Giebelen, 19, of Krefeld, Germany and two Americans: Jonathan McGeary, 22 and Levi Wallace, 23.

The information was released Thursday by Yavapai County Sheriff's Office of northern Arizona.

Ted Naber, an uncle to the Shellbrook woman who died, told CBC News Thursday that Johanna was in Arizona to visit Wallace, her boyfriend.

"She was down for the long weekend, just a quick visit, and was supposed to be back here on Monday," her uncle said, adding the couple had met through church camps. He said the entire Naber and Wallace families were close friends from various church activities.

"The majority of the family are Christian people and Johanna was a Christian herself, so we have the hope that our lives on this earth are just a shadow of what they're going to be," Ted Naber added. "There was no ill will in the girl. She was just a happy, bubbly little teenage girl."

McGeary was flying a single-engine Cessna that crashed Sunday in a remote canyon in Sedona, Arizona. His father, Dennis, said the four had planned to sight-see and have lunch in Sedona that day.

According to a news release from local authorities, the crashed plane was located Sunday night around 6 p.m. in Fay Canyon, northeast of Bear Mountain.

Witnesses, hikers in the area, reported having seen fire in the area — the result of the crash — some two hours earlier. Officials said access to the crash site was difficult due to the terrain and fire.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.

A memorial service is set for Naber on Aug. 2, at 2 p.m. in the Shellbrook Elks Hall.